Patient Gabriel le Roux (80 years old) was flown out by E-med Rescue 24 early on Sunday morning from Oranjemund, Namibia to Cape Town after a head injury. Also on board were his daughter, a paramedic and two pilots. According to Acsa (Airports Company of South Africa) all flights were put in a holding pattern due to a technical “glitch” in the radar system. The Cessna 441Conquest V5-NRS disappeared from the radar for about an hour before crashing in the Plattekloof area, killing all 5 passengers on sight. Opposed to public rumours and opinions, the radar “glitch” was not responsible for the plane crash, as by the relative authorities.

Other SA Plane Crashes

Once again this incident brings back sad memories of the death of Hansie Cronje, former SA cricket captain where the plane he was in crashed in the Outoniqua mountains near George. An alarming number of news headlines on plane accidents other than the recent one in Cape town caught the eye, all of which over only the past 12 month period:

Two men injured in Eastern Cape aircraft crash – Saturday 13 September 2014

Two planes crash in Mpumalanga – Monday 15 September 2014

Two killed in KZN light aircraft crash – 16 September 2014

Two injured in light aircraft crash – Saturday 6 December 2014

Two dead in Krugersdorp plane crash – Monday 8 December 2014

Siblings killed in Limpopo aircraft crash – Thursday 8 January 2015

Plane crash in Potchefstroom kills two – Thursday 12 March 2015

From Wright to Wrong, or Not?

The Evolution of aviation, since the first flying experiments of the Wright brothers at Huffman Prairie and Kitty Hawk in 1903 and their development of the Wright Flyer III in 1905 as first practical aircraft, can be described as none less than spectacular. With the debut of computerized technology, the aircraft industry was taken to heights unimaginable to even the most adventurous of past visionaries. Since the beginning of time man envied bird and dreamt of flying.

Way back in 1490, artist and inventor Leonardo da Vinci already developed the plan for an ornithopter. It was a funny man-carrying contraption with flapping wings. Other pioneers such as Sir George Cayley, William Samuel Henson, Jules-François Dupuis-Delcourt, Louis Charles Letur and many more, would follow on their own quest for a flying machine. The world as were known by those pioneers became so much smaller and attainable to us due to all their tireless efforts.

Flying Under the RADAR

Even in these developed times, things can sadly go wrong for numerous reasons such as human errors, technical failures, bad weather and others sometimes unexplainable. On Sunday morning, flights from all over South Africa were put on hold and delayed due to a technical “glitch” in the radar system. Apparently, something like that doesn’t only happen in our country. Earlier this year on 23 June, New Zeeland had a similar “glitch”, delaying flights all over the country for 2 hours. Even in the USA in 2006, a telephone company simply switched the radar off during maintenance at their busiest airport, O’Hare in Chicago, delaying flights for up to three and a half hours. If the radar of an entire country be down for 2 hours, how much did we really evolve then?

Your Quick “How To” Makeover, Straight from your Pantry

Pre-Spring Makeover, Inside and Out

It takes 21 days for a new habit to form and that is more-or-less the amount of days we have left before spring day. If you were like me, not as motivated to do something about your health and appearance during the cold winter months, don’t fret, there is still time. And if the “damage” is too excessive, these 21 days will be enough to motivate us for a complete health and beauty makeover this summer. After all, it is more than 3 months till the year end summer holiday, the same amount of time needed for a new habit to be fixed completely and to replace all the bad ones. It is never too late or too early to start taking care of ourselves. Now see?!

This is not intended as medical treatment in any way, I would merely like to share with you what works for me. Mother Nature is the very best doctor or chemist there is. But please, you don’t have to believe my fun and sometimes wacky remedies and methods. Do your own (legitimate) research, it’s great fun and extremely informative. Remember, there are many foods, herbs and spices interacting with chronic medications, should be used in specific amounts or which might not agree with everyone. Some specifically need to be taken in accordance with others for better benefit. Make sure you find the correct information and methods for you.

PANTRY Health and Beauty

The internet (especially Pinterest and StumbleUpon, of course) is swarming with various articles about how to use the ingredients in our own pantries as health and beauty products. Here are only a few:

Turmeric – Almost all of the above and more! This golden spice is worth it’s weight in gold and there are various delicious ways to incorporate it into our diet. It needs to be taken with black pepper and/or coconut oil though, to be absorbed easier.

Lemon (use the peels and juice) – It is vitamin loaded and has numerous health properties, many of the above.

Coconut oil – This is the new buzz on the health and beauty scene which aids many a benefit.

Don’t Waste Your WAIST SYSTEMS

You are what you eat, right? That statement is the absolute truth, but even more importantly is that we are what we absorb through digestion. Every single healthy food or supplement we consume will mean absolutely nothing if those nutrients aren’t properly absorbed in our body. The root of all evil will foremost be found in the colon, but our kidneys and urinary systems and liver needs our special care too. Cleansing these should be the first step to a health and beauty makeover.

I’m on FIRE

This doesn’t have anything to do with the Bruce Springsteen song by the same name (now it’s stuck in my head!) or a wave of menopausal hot flashes. It has everything to do with health enemy number ONE, inflammation, which should be dealt with as soon as possible and where better to start than in the pantry.

A Surely Fellow, are You?

An acidic body is a sick body, causing various health problems to all systems. All we need to do is find the lemon and bicarbonate of soda from the pantry, for starters.

My Own “how to” Health Make Over Routine:

For health, I incorporate the following with a healthy low-GI diet of good proteins, lots of fresh veggies, fruits, nuts and seeds, healthy oils and safe exercise routine:

First thing in the morning: Warm ginger water with lemon.

Mid-morning: A bit of Kefir mixed in yoghurt with grounded flax seeds and frozen mixed berries. A teaspoon of my mixed dry spice concoction (cayenne, turmeric, cumin, black pepper) in a little water with lemon juice.

During the day: Various glasses of pure water, flavoured water (mint leaves, cucumber and lemon slices) and green tea (sometimes with a bit of ginger and lemon) and some bicarbonate of soda in a little water.

After lunch: ½ teaspoon of cayenne in lemon water.

Mid-afternoon: Same as mid-morning.

After work: Foot spa (warm water with Epson salt which is essential magnesium absorbed through the skin, sea salt, bicarbonate of soda, chamomile and lavender essential oils). This very mix will make a wonderful relaxing detoxification bath (don’t forget the candles, soft music, hair- and face mask).

SO …

With our health and beauty makeover sorted in time (why not throw in a few guided health and weight loss meditations for listening on a daily basis, just for additional brain training), we can concentrate on spring cleaning the house. So enjoy your pre-spring health and beauty makeover and happy researching!

Who was Cecil the Lion?

The killing of the well known Zimbabwean lion, Cecil on 1 July 2015, launched an avalanche of strong reactions worldwide in social media. The 13 year old lion (a Panthera leo bleyenberghi), named after Cecil John Rhodes, amongst others in the park were part of a study conducted by the Oxfort University. They were studied and GPS-tracked by scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Research Unit in the Hwange National Park since 2008 when he was first spotted. Cecil with his beautiful black-fringed mane apparently enjoyed the attention from tourists and the media, allowing vehicles as close as 10 meters from him.

Celebrity Hype

Cecil was the main attraction at the park. One news item suggested that this incident attracted the amount of attention, “because he was given a name and was a celebrity”. Alex the lion from the animation film Madagaskar springs to mind, but this is indeed no fictional matter. The death or murder of any celebrity for instance, usually sparks a much bigger reaction and a lion is no exception. Here in South Africa, there is a renewed outcry in social media now for attention towards farmers and farm workers, who also became an “endangered species”.

Cry our Beloved Planet

Way too many animal species became endangered at the hands of humans. The totally extinct Dodo bird from Mauritius was an easy target for uninvited humans and predators that arrived to the island from the early 1500’s. The African rhinoceros might also become extinct in the near future at the current rate they are being killed, not to mention the number of sharks killed for their fins. Films such as Gorillas in the mist, Charlize Theron’s 1989 film Mighty Joe Young and the BZN song, Over the hills wherein “Jumbo” was slaughtered for it’s ivory, all sadly depicts the cruel brutality of man. It would seem as if the human race is riding on a wave of total destruction, without the blink of an eye! It isn’t only man against man and man against animal, but we are busy murdering Mother Nature, the very source of our existence. Many celebrities and politicians amongst others are dearly devoted to save our planet. We all have to start doing our part, but isn’t it too little too late now?

Justice for Cecil?

It will take some time before the dust will finally settle on this one. The American dentist Walter Palmer who allegedly hunted and killed Cecil, professional hunters guide Theo Bronkhorst and owner of the farm where the lion was hunted down, Honest Trymore Ndlovu, might all face serious charges if their excuses are found to be less than legal and just. Even if they can proof their innocence and the legitimacy of the hunt in question, they will face a difficult, if not impossible task to save their professional careers. The life span of an African male lion in the wild is between 12 and 16 years and in captivity they have a life expectancy of up to 20 years. If nature should run it’s course, old Cecil might not have been around for that much longer anyway, but at least Mother Nature had a say in it.